Glue-clamp machine.



N J. BILLSTROM,

GLUE CLAMP MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED FEB. 24. I916.

Patented Mar. 20, 1917.

2 SHEETS-SHEET l.

N. J. BILLSTROM.

GLUE CL'AMP MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED FEB.24. 191s.

Patented Mar. 20, 1917.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

GLUEJJLAMP MIACI-IINE.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, NnLs J. BILLS'IROM, a citizen of the United States, residing at Rockford, in the county of Winnebago and State of Illinois, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Glue-Clamp Machines, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to glue clamp carriers or machine of the character described in my Patent No. M0219, which provides an endless carrier equipped on its periphery with a series of clamping devices each adapted for clamping together a number of boards or the like to be joined by glue, and mechanism for driving the carrier so that the clamped sections at a loading or unloading station are moved away therefrom by the carrier as the same is moved to bring new clamping devices to the said station and then returned to the station to be removed, a cycle of the carrier being of sufiicient duration to permit the glued joints to set.

One of the primary objects of my present invention is to provide an improved glue clamp machine of the carrier type by which board sections or the like may be clamped together in wo directions, in other words, so that the sections may be clamped together and end-banded in one operation, the end-banding being the gluing and clamping of end sections to and across the ends of sections clamped together from their sides.

Another object is to provide a glue clamp carrier by which board sections may be end and side clamped very accurately, conveniently and quickly.

Generally stated, I have materialized these objects by providing a carrier movable about a given axis and equipped at its periphery with a series of frames, each of which is constructed for holding board sections or the like in a fiat plane and provided with means for clamping the sections together in one direction, other clamping means pivotally mounted, preferably on the carrier, and movable into and out of clamping relation with the sections on the frames for clamping said sections in a direction crosswise of the frame clamps, and with means for holding these pivoted clamps out of clamping position so that the board sections may be easily adjusted on the frames, glued and clamped in position thereon.

Other objects and attendant advantages Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Mar. so, 1917.

Application filed February 24, 1916. Serial No. 80,229.

will be apparent as the invention becomes better understood by reference to the following description when considered in connection with the accompanying drawings, in which Figure 1 is a side elevation of a glue clamp machine embodying my improve rents;

Fig. 2 is a. plan view of the loading station end of the machine;

Fig. 3 is an "enlarged sectional view taken on the line 33 of Fig. 2; and

Fig. 4: is a view of the outer end of a clamp-carrying frame.

The invention described in my patent mentioned above provides for clamping boards together in one direction, and when it is desirable to end-band the boards, that is, glue board sections to the ends of the already clamped boards, it is necessary to perform this operation separately from the machine. In. my present invention, as will presently appear, a number of boards may 2e glued together and end-banded in the same operation,'and this work may be performed in an accurate manner and very quickly and economically. I have shown for purpose of illustration a machine of the endless carrier type driven about a pair of spaced shafts and equipped on its periphery with clamping devices, but it should be understood that this carrier might be suitably mounted on means other than spaced shafts.

Referring to Fig. 1, spaced shafts 10 and 11 are journaled at their ends in bearings 12 secured to the top of the standards 13 and equipped at each end with square blocks 14 fixedly secured to the shafts. A suitable frame interposed between and connecting the standards 13 provides upper and lower tracks 15 and 16 respectively. arranged in longitudinal alinement with the blocks 14. An endless carrier is trained over the blocks 14-. and rides intermediate the same on the tracks 15 and 16. This carrier comprises links 1? joined together so as to form a. continuous chain structure trained over so as to be moved by rotation of the blocks 1e. Wheels 18 mounted on the outer ends of the pivot bolts of the links are adapted to ride on the tracks 15 and 16 for supporting the carrier intermediate its ends. The endless chains are connected by crossrods, each of the opposite links being con nected by rods 19 and 21. The carrier 10 or 11 to move the carrier in a clockwise direction viewing Fig. 1.

Upon each pair of cross-rods 19 and 21 is mounted means for holding board sections to be clamped together, including clamps for clamping the said sections in a direction crosswise of the carrier, and other clamping means mounted on the rod 21 for clamping the sections together in a direction transverse to the clamping action of the frame-connected clamps. Since the clamping devices of each link or chain element are identical in construction, although they may include a greater or less number of clamps as will be apparent hereinafter a detailed description of one of such devices will suffice for an understanding of my invention.

Referring therefore, to Figs. 2 and 3, the clamp-carrying frame, designated in general by reference character 20, comprises side bars 22 and 23 fixedly secured at their inner ends to the cross-rods 19 and 21 joined at their outer ends by a cross-bar 24:, thus forming with the cross-rods 19 and 21. a rectangular frame. In the present instance, I have shown the side bars 22 and 23 in the form of angle bars and have bolted these at their inner ends to brackets 25 that are interposed between and provided with recessed portions engaging the said rods 19 and 21, clamping blocks 26 bolted to the brackets being employed to lock the same in connection with the rods. By reason of this construction, the brackets may, if desired, be adjusted lengthwise of the rods, and also the frame 20 may be easily detached from the carrier. Brace bars 27 serve as means for preventing lateral displacement of the side bars 22 and 23. The cross-bar 24: of the frame in the form of an angle bar is set off from the side bars 22 and 23 by blocks 28, the said cross-bar being suitably connected to the side bars as by means of bolts passing through said bars and the blocks 28. The cross-bar 24 serves as an abutment and guide surface againstwhich rests one edge of the boards to be clamped, care being taken that this abutment is arranged parallel with the shaft 10 so that the boards may be accurately arranged and clamped as will be shortly apparent. A pair of screw clamps 29 of any suitable or preferred construction are fixedly secured to the top of the side bars 22 and 23 but with capacity for adjustment longitudinally of these bars. It will be noted that the faces 31 of the clamp stocks lie in the same plane as the face 32 of the cross-bar 24, so that a level and accurate bed is formed for supporting the boards when they are arranged on the frame to be clamped.

Another set of clamping devices is employed for clamping the boards together in a direction crosswise to the clamps 29 and at the same time clamping the boards to the abutment 24; which serves as a straight-edge guide for properly locating the boards on the frame 20. This set comprises a series of clamps 33 pivotally mounted adjacent to the inner end of the frame 20 on an axis parallel with the shaft 10, so that they may be swung on their pivots into and out of clamping relation with the boards on said frame. These clamps 33 I have provided with recessed ends 3 1 shaped, as shown in Fig. 3, to fit over the rod 21 and be pivotally and freely detachably mounted thereon. Be cause of this construction, the clamps 33 may be mountedupon and removed from the rods 21 at will and they are also freely adjustable longitudinally of said rod and may be swung on their pivots into operative clamping relation with the boards on the frame 20 and away from said frame to an inoperative position such as is indicated by the raised clamp in Fig. 2. The clamp 33 is held in inoperative position by a catch that is pivoted to the back of the clamp and shaped at its free end to provide a hook adapted to engage the cross-rod 21 of the next adjacent carrier link.

A suitable rest 36 may be provided adapted to be moved into and out of the path of the frame 20 as the carrier revolves for rigidly supporting the frame at what may be termed a loading and unloading station, that is, a position at which it is convenient to mount theboards or sections on the frames 20, apply the glue and clamp the boards, and also to remove them from the clamping means after the glue has set. Suitable mechanism such as described in my prior patent may be employed for rotating the carrier and automatically stopping its movement at different loading stations and simultaneously moving the rest 36 into position at these stations to support the frames 20.

lVith a clamp-carrying frame at the loading station, it willbe manifest that the boards or sections to be glued together may be conveniently positioned and arranged on the said frame. In the present instance I have illustrated (Fig. 2) a number of board sections arranged to make up a single rectangular board structure comprising longitudinally extending sections 37 end-banded by the pieces 38, in which case it is desirous of clamping the boards endwise and crosswise. The abutment 24 together with the clamps 29 provide accurate supporting surface upon which the boards may be held in a flat plane and against a guide that enables the boards to be easily and properly positioned with respect to the several clamping means. During arrangement of the boards on the frame 20, the clamps 33 are held in inoperative position by the catches 35, so as not to interfere with the work of the operator in so arranging the boards. The catches are then released and the clamp 33 swung down into clamping relation with the boards and tightened up together with the clamps 29 to compress the boards lengthwise and sidewise, it being noted that the boards are clamped sidewise by the abutment 24 and the inner abutments of the clamps 33. After the boards have been securely clamped, the rest 36 is retracted, permitting the carrier to be revolved until the next succeeding frame 20 has been positioned at the loading station at which another set of boards are glued and clamped together. At this station the boards are also removed from the machine, since the operation thereof is planned so that the glue of a given set of clamped boards will set during one cycle of the carrler.

From the foregoing, it will be manifest that my improvements provide means for effecting the several objects prefaced above, and it should be understood" that various modifications may be resorted to without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as expressed in the appended claims.

I claim:

1. A glue clamp machine comprising a carrier movable about a given axis and equipped on its periphery with a series of outwardly extending frames adapted to receive and hold in a common plane a number of sections to be clamped together, and clamps pivotally mounted on the carrier and movable on their pivots into and out of clamping relation to the sections on said frames, and means for holding the said pivoted clamps out of the said clamping relation.

9. A glue clamp machine comprising a carrier movable about a giiven axis and equipped on its periphery with a series of outwardly extending frames, clamps attached to each. frame extending parallel with the said axis of the carrier, and clamps pivotally mounted on the carrierextending crosswise of said axis thereof and movable on their pivots into and out of clamping relation to sections on the frames so that said pivoted clamps may clamp said sections in a direction crosswise of the frame clamps.

3. A glue clamp machine comprising a carrier movable about a given axis and equipped on its periphery with a series of outwardly extending frames, each provided at its outer end with an abutment parallel with said axis, a clamp secured to each frame spaced inwardly from its abutment and parallel thereto, and clamps pivotally mounted adjacent to the inner end of the frame on an axis parallel with said given axis and adapted to be swung on their pivots into and out of clamping relation with the sections on said clamp-equipped frame for clamping the sections to said abutment.

4. A glue clamp machine, comprising spaced co-axially mounted chain-like structures the opposite links of which are joined by a pair of crossbars, an outwardly projected frame rigidly secured to a pair of cross-bars, clamping means mounted on said frame for clamping boards carried by the frame in a direction parallel with the axis about which the carrier turns, and clamps pivotally mounted on one of the cross-bars of said pair for clamping said boards in a direction crosswise to the clamping action of the first mentioned clamping means and being movable on their pivots out of clamping relation to the boards.

5. In a glue clamp machine, the combination of an endless carrier equipped on its periphery with a plurality of outwardly eX- tending rigid frames, a pair of parallel clamps rigidly secured to each frame and adapted to receive and support boards in a common plane and to clamp these boards, and clamps pivotally mounted at one end in connection with each frame and arranged to clamp said boards crosswise of the clamping action of the first mentioned clamps and to be swung on their pivots into and out of clamping relation to the boards.

6. In a glue clamp machine, the combination of an endless carrier having spaced link sections joined by a cross-bar structure, a pair of parallel clamps rigidly secured in connection with a crossbar structure and adapted to receive and support boards in a common plane and to clamp these boards, and clamps arranged crosswise to the first mentioned clamps and pivotally mounted at one end so as to be carried with said cross-bar structure and arranged on the side of said boards opposite the first mentioned clamps and being swingable on their pivots into and out of clamping relation to the boards.

NELS. J. BILLSTROM.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Eatents, Washington, D. G." 

